Word Origin & History

foundation late 14c., "action of founding," from L. fundationem (nom. fundatio) "a founding," from fundatus, pp. of fundare (see found (1)). The L. word is glossed in O.E. by staþol. Meaning "that which is founded" (a college, hospital, etc.) is from 1510s; meaning "funds endowed" is early 15c. Sense of "solid base of a structure" is from late 15c.

Example Sentences for foundation

Tie to the foundation thread of the first oval of the first circle.

That the first Principle and foundation, in this as in everything else, is Good Sense, v.40.

A judge, he apparently did not know that "good faith is the foundation of Justice."

He that buildeth on that foundation shall never be confounded.

The security of individual property is the foundation of all social improvement.

The foundation of this injunction is—God has given you everything.

This charge, I am confident, was without the least foundation in truth.

The foundation of liability in trespass as well as case was said to be negligence.

From the time of its foundation down to the present century the name of Jena stood for all that was wild, absurd, and outrageous.

The foundation of the whole matter is, after all, good sense, as the courts have often said.